


Break my cage (you'd better run)

by charons_boat



Category: The Boyz (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Werewolves Are Known, Born Werewolves, Despair, Desperation, Eclipses, Flashbacks, Happy Ending, M/M, Mate bonds, Mentioned The Boyz Ensemble, Pain, Past Kidnapping, Rescue, Scars, Time Skips, Werewolves, Wolf Council, daytime turning, government buildings, having to be chained, juyeon and chanhee are brothers, kid!Chanhee, pack relations worker, registered werewolves, seasonal jobs, slight mention of PTSD, sneaking into tours, some werewolves have magic, sudden manifestation of magic, the (human) government is bad, turned werewolves, unique pack dynamics, wolfsbane burns, wolfsbane collars
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-02
Updated: 2020-12-02
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:33:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27839161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/charons_boat/pseuds/charons_boat
Summary: They had only just settled into the new pack, the new job and routine. So why--why was Juyeon always finding more trouble?
Relationships: Kim Sunwoo/Lee Juyeon (The Boyz), Lee Juyeon & Choi Chanhee | New
Comments: 4
Kudos: 19
Collections: Die Jungz Fest (R1)





	Break my cage (you'd better run)

**Author's Note:**

> i hope you enjoy this! i had fun writing it,, enjoy the wolf boys uwu  
> my assignment was ranodm mode,, very fun
> 
> mentions of a brief moment of panic/PTSD moment, burn scars, being attacked, implied death, injury, and hopelessness

The train rattles to a stop, and I stand with a groan, stretching before reaching up and grabbing my suitcase from the overhead storage. For some reason, snow had come early this year--perhaps the Mager had fought with his boyfriend again, which had led to freak thunderstorms on the hottest summer days in the past--and put an end to my term in the city. Eric meets me on the platform and chats quietly with me about the state of the other packs before the train begins to pull away and he runs to catch the tail end of it. I laugh quietly at the blond because he's done that every time we've swapped. I stretch again and stare towards the snowy forest with a grin, excited to get back to my cabin for the winter.

The council had been kind enough to help me build a cabin when I joined the pack three years ago, and then the year after, they'd given me the option to be their warm or cold weather relations representative. I'd taken the warm weather because I preferred the forest in winter, and Eric had gotten the cold. The trek back to my cabin is fairly quiet, the rest of the forest blanketed in the sudden snow. Everything is muted and calm in winter, something that's refreshing after the fast-paced noise of the city. It'll be a few hours before they come to check on me, and tomorrow they'll likely hold a small feast in celebration of my return.

Unlike most packs, the main force of ours is firmly situated in the forest. That makes Eric and I's jobs even more important because we're the only connection the city packs have to our forest branch. Now, though, I have half a year to relax and further explore the forest. The three members of the ruling council had said before that I could go wherever I wanted within the forest, but even still, I'd only gone to the pack gathering.

The cabin is chilly when I walk in, but the tarp-covered wood pile out front is waist-high, kept stocked by the pack. I make a mental note to thank whoever comes to check on me and set my red suitcase next to my bed. It takes me a moment to remember how many logs the wood stove holds, and the flint and steel has been moved from where I had it last, but after a few minutes, there's a low fire in the stove and the house is just beginning to warm. I refamiliarize myself with which drawers hold what clothes as I hum and unpack, happy to be back. The city is interesting and fun, but the forest and the pack is what really feels like home. Even the fancy apartments given to us by the pack don't feel like home in the way the cabin does.

I shimmy into a warmer hoodie and my fuzzy sock-boots, continuing to hum as I pad around the cabin, munching on a bag of bugles. The only noise is that of my own breathing, my own heartbeat, the soft crackling of the fire and the muted crunch of the slightly stale chips. I can't help but grin as I wander around my house, glad to be alone again in the quiet comfort of this place that I've so dearly missed. It's been too long, the distance too far. Even inside the cabin, it smells like the forest. Tomorrow, maybe I'll put on music as I wander; today, though, I'm content to refamiliarize myself with this empty place in silence.

A while later, when the chips are gone and the bag is in the trash, there's a knock on the door. The little cabin is comfortably warm now, even getting close to the point of being too hot with the addition of the hoodie and sock-boots. I smile again as I stand up and open the door. Jacob stands just beyond the door in jeans and a light jacket; as someone who was born a werewolf, Jacob is much more resilient in the face of cold weather.

"Hey, Juyeon. It's good to have you back," he says, his soft voice edged with kindness. I nod and pull heavy boots over my fuzzy socks, letting the door close after I join him outside the cabin.

"It's good to be back. I've missed it terribly," I tell him. There's a glint of knowing to his eye and excitement to his smile.

"Are you ready to go to the gathering? We're holding a pack dinner to celebrate your return." I start walking towards the big clearing surrounded by little cabins, the place that has always served as a meeting place for the pack. Jacob follows and quietly asks how everyone else is doing, afterwards asking about my plans.

"I think I might explore this year. I wanna see what secrets this place has." Jacob bursts into laughter.

"There's only one secret this place has, Juyeon, and it's not a very well-kept one. Hell, even the humans know about it. But, anyways, that place is--"

"Jacob's back! Oh, and he's got Juyeon, too! Guys, Juyeon and Jacob are back!" One of the cubs comes running, clinging to Jacob's leg, and the rest of the little pack follows, clutching at our legs and begging for stories and food. I grin as I pick up Chanhee, the sulky cub forcing a pout on his face as he resolutely looks away.

"Nyu-yah~" Chanhee wavers as I call his name, but he keeps his face turned away. Jacob shoos the other children away, promising them that as soon as we make it to the gathering, the dinner will be started. "Chanhee-yah, are you really gonna ignore me when I just got back? Hmm?" He glances at me for a second before huffing and turning away again. "Oh dear, Jacob! Little New has abandoned me! I think he no longer loves me. What a cruel world," I gasp. I sigh heavily and hold my brother out to Jacob, sulkily turning my face away. "Take him from me! I cannot bear his rejection!" Chanhee starts squirming immediately, Jacob struggling to hold back a laugh as he takes the five-year-old.

"I shall take him and give him to another family, Juyeon," the council member says solemnly. "Perhaps he shall love them more dearly than he does you." Chanhee makes grabby hands at me, his lip trembling and tears beginning to come to his eyes. Before he even calls out a desperate, "Bubba!" I've broken and pulled him back into my arms. I kiss away his tears as he giggles.

"Sorry for teasing, Chani. Will you ignore Bubba next time he comes back?" The little noiret shakes his head frantically and twists his hands in my hoodie, refusing to let go even after I've sat down at the table. The other cubs wait a moment to see if he'll come back to sit with them at the children's table, bursting into energetic chatter when they see him clinging to me. As much as I've missed the quiet of the forest, I've missed my little brother more. At first, he stayed with me all the time. I'd been the only one that had been able to get close to him after our parents' death. Now, though, he stays in the den: it's something like a daycare for the cubs, a place for them to stay while their parents or siblings are out working. In a couple days, I'll ask if he'd like to stay with me for the winter. For now, though, I enjoy the celebratory dinner and hearing his quiet giggles as I feed him little bits of meat.

* * *

  
Chanhee runs off with his friends as soon as the dinner is over, only glancing back at me once. I wander over to where the council members stand idly, chatting quietly as some of the others clear off the table. Sangyeon whirls around at my tapping on his shoulder, a smile spreading over his face.

"It's good to see you again. Thank you for your work in the city this summer and fall." Sangyeon is always dressed simply, in flat-colored sweaters and jeans. He's been on the council the longest and is one of the largest wolves in the pack. He's one of the prettiest too, a silky squirrel-grey that Chanhee loves to braid and bury his hands in. I don't blame him for his love of Sangyeon's soft fur.

"It's my pleasure. I wanted to thank whoever's kept my woodpile stocked." Jacob grins and steps forward.

"Kevin did it himself a few days ago, absolutely insistent that you'd be coming back soon. We let him because of his uncanny sense for the weather." The brunet's eyes are brighter at the quick mention of his mate, and it brings a smile to my own face. Jacob flaunts Kevin and shows how proud he is of the turned-wolf at every opportunity.

"Please, tell him I said thank you." Jacob nods and wanders off, presumably to find Kevin and relay my thanks. "Oh, and… thank you for taking care of Chanhee. I know he can be a handful sometimes."

"It's no problem," Changmin tells me. His usually-silver hair is dyed a smoky green, a color I know will look odd on a wolf. "He's a joy to be around more than he is a terror. Will he be staying with you until summer comes?" I shrug and look away for a moment, watching him play tag with the other children.

"I think I'll let him decide this year. I know he likes the other kids. Maybe being around them more will help him forget… everything else," I say, trailing off into a whisper. I hope his nightmares have stopped unlike mine. I hope that at the very least, my little brother can forget what I probably never will. Changmin steps closer and rubs a hesitant hand up and down my arm.

"He's been doing well, Juyeon. I doubt he'll remember it for much longer." I nod and wander off towards the rowdy pack of cubs. They pull me into the dirt and start a round of _conquer the giant_.

* * *

  
The sky is dark when I head out for a walk, my footsteps crunching through the loose snow. The frigid air is just as chilly as it always has been, but I've been able to get by with only a scarf and a hoodie for the past two years. Out of boredom I begin to whistle some tune I used to sing to Chanhee to help him sleep. It's been a while since I sang my little brother to sleep, and my heart aches at the old memory. I wander aimlessly, trying to find all the unfamiliar places I haven't been to yet. The moon is high in the sky when I smell foreign werewolves amongst the cold scent of snow and the odd chemical scent coming from the blocky building in front of me. It's still far away, surrounded by a tall fence with razor wire on the top. The snow covers all the other scents and makes the stranger ones more prominent. Something in that building smells like an inferno, like the ash and embers that fly from the bonfires lit for birthdays. I almost want to cling to the fence to get closer to the strangeness of that wolf's scent, but I hold myself back and just stare.

The longer I look at the blocky building, the more unsettled I feel. I can smell the faint, crackly scents of other strange wolves, buried under the overpowering scent of the one who smells like fire. Fear brews in my belly and my heart begins to race. It is with great effort that I keep my first two steps backwards from making too much noise. Two silent steps before I turn and start running, trying to get back to my little cabin at fast as I can. For some reason, it feels like there are eyes piercing my skin, throwing daggers into my back. The almost unnoticeable hum of electricity fades fast as I run, and the only sound left is the crunching of snow underfoot. Paranoia builds and, although I swear to myself over and over that no one is there, I'm convinced I'm being chased, hunted. I'm sure that there's someone coming after me.

My memories bleed into the present and my breathing becomes harsher, my heart and my arms aching as I run with my three-year-old brother in my arms. He's sobbing, tears mixing with the blood from his broken nose and the shallow cut in his face: the wolf had been close enough that a wicked-sharp claw had sliced into his tiny cheek as I pulled him off the floor and into my arms before beginning to run. The wolves--there are two or three of them, almost enough to have taken down my entire family one-on-one--are terrifyingly fast, and I'm only ahead of them because it's hard for the wolves to maneuver indoors, because I know the forest behind our house better, because they can't turn as quickly in the damp dirt as I can. I don't know how much longer I'll be able to run. My breath is torn ragged and my heart is running a marathon already, sure to burst soon. Pain explodes in my back and I--

I slam through the door of my cabin, so forceful in my panic that I nearly rip the door off its hinges. It slams into the wall and I skid to a stop, barreling into my coffee table and tripping over it. The fall brings something sharp digging into my back, and pain ghosts over the jagged scars there once more. I lay there, a tumbled mess on the floor, dazed and in pain. I can barely feel the tears streaming down my face, but I sniffle regardless. Memories and phantom pains roll over me, drowning me in things I've tried to suppress, things I wish I could forget.

"Bubba?"

Chanhee's quiet voice is sweet despite the obvious concern. He pierces through the fog, and I push myself up. The couch feels so incredibly soft as I lean against it, and I momentarily wish it'd swallow me up and take me away. Chanhee puts his little hands on my cheeks, pouting at me as tears shine in his own eyes. "Are you otay, Bubba? Why 'ou cryin'?" I cover one of his hands with my own and force a little smile as I pull him into my lap, leaning back against the couch. "Did 'ou dream o'the wolfies again?" I nod quietly, and my little brother frowns. He uses his chubby little fingers to wipe the tears from my face, something he'd seen our parents do. The memory is probably far away and vague for him now, and I doubt if he can remember who it was that he watched do this.

"Don't worry, Chani. I'll be okay. I just got a little spooked when I went for a walk earlier," I tell him. I'm glad he's not older, that he can't see through my lies yet. The little cub nods and puts his most serious expression on his face.

"Minnie says da meanie wolfies are gone. We…" he scrunches up his eyebrows as he tries to think of the right word. "Not… scare o'dem an'more."

"I'm trying, Chani. It's still hard not to be scared, though. If we stay here, though… we'll be safe. We'll be okay," I whisper to him, starting to rock him back and forth.

"Da pack 'ill protec' us?" He looks hopeful as always, his little eyes shining. I nod and shakily climb to my feet.

"The pack will protect us," I agree quietly.

That night, I fall asleep with my little brother held close to my heart. I don't know who let him come to the cabin, or even if Changmin and Hyunjae knew that he'd escaped and run to my cabin, but I'm glad for his presence. I don't sleep easily; in fact, I wake up shifted, panting out of fear. Chanhee has his little hands buried in my shaggy black fur, quietly stroking through my fur and clumsily braiding it. He giggles when he sees that I'm awake and presses a sloppy kiss to my muzzle.

"Happy morni', Bubba," he says quietly. Chanhee has always been quiet and shy. Last night is the most I've heard him talk in a long while. I take a long, slow breath and lick Chanhee's cheek. He bursts into a peal of giggles as I shift. He waits for me to push myself up and lean against the wall before planting his chubby hands on my bare chest. "Hung'y, Bubba." I nod and pick him up as I stand from the bed, muscles sore and legs unstable. I set him in his high chair and am just about to start mixing up some pancake batter when my phone buzzes. I yawn and rub my eyes, blearily staring at the message on my screen.

_Jacob: breakfast at the pack gathering when you guys get hungry :)_

So they had known that Chanhee ended up at the cabin last night. I let out another yawn and pick Chanhee back up. He stares at the pancake ingredients longingly before pouting at me. Before he can open his mouth to complain that he wants pancakes, I set him on my bed and start rifling through my drawers, trying to remember where I last had Chanhee's clothes. "We're having pack breakfast, Chani. Where are your clothes at?" I turn to see him pulling out his shirt, proudly showing me the _Pack's Best Boy_ shirt he's got on. I grin and shake my head. "Not the ones you're wearing. You need clean ones." He pouts again, furrowing his little eyebrows, before his eyes light up.

"Den!" Of course. It would've been impractical for them to leave all his clothes here and make trips back and forth everyday when he woke up and went to sleep. Not to mention the fact that he's been growing quickly, a partial result of being turned.

"Okay then. You can change after breakfast." The memory of that unnatural, unnerving building lingers heavy in my mind, and I know that I'll never rest easy until I visit it. "Okay, Chani, where's your jacket," I murmur quietly, still not entirely awake. He wiggles off the bed and runs around the cabin, his little feet _pitter-patter_ -ing on the wooden floors. I sluggishly wander around my room, pulling on the first hoodie and pair of sweatpants that I can find. Chanhee comes back in with his bright red sweater stuck awkwardly around his head, his arms trapped in a way that must be uncomfortable. I laugh softly and pick him up, depositing him back on my wrinkled sheets. Untangling him is a feat in and of itself, but soon enough, we're wearing our sweaters and boots, and Chanhee has a scarf over his mouth and nose as well. I don't think the snow is going to melt anytime soon, and Chanhee skips in snow half his shin deep while holding tightly to my hand.

To my surprise, Chanhee climbs into my lap instead of running off to sit with his friends. Changmin brings over two plates of food along with another set of silverware, this one more child-sized. My little brother opens his mouth like a baby bird, silently demanding to be fed. I acquiesce, feeding him small bits of waffle and egg. He devours the sausage patties and strips of bacon that are loaded onto the plate. I sneak bites in between feeding Chanhee, and soon enough both plates are clean. Changmin takes the plates away, and then comes back to take Chanhee to change clothes.

"Sangyeon!" The council member turns at the call and jogs over, smiling at me. He looks comfortable in his cut-off jeans and cut-sleeve tee. The perks of being born a werewolf.

"What's up, Juyeon?" He sounds eager to answer whatever question I've got. Sangyeon has always liked to help.

"I… I went on a walk yesterday, after dinner. I found this weird building with a chain fence around it. I could smell other wolves inside." Sangyeon's eagerness and the brilliant smile disappears at the mention of the building. He sighs and looks away, glances around to make sure we're relatively far from the others.

"That's… it's a government building. They call it a 'dangerous shifter holding facility'. Have you heard the legends about werewolves with magic powers?" I shake my head, and he sighs. "They're real," he murmurs, looking pensive. "We said they'd been--"

Blessed by the moon? _I can't help but scoff at the thought as the thin metal bars dig into my skin._ Yeah, right.

_My mother used to tell me that when I was born, all the fires in camp went out; "Moments later," her smooth voice said, "a wisp of flame danced over your mouth. This is how we knew, my dear Sunwoo, that you had been blessed by the moon."_

_As I grew older, the elders began to_ tell me _that I'd been blessed by the moon, citing the fire at my birth as sign of proof; as a child, I took the absolute belief in their words and held it close to my heart, nourished it, cherished it. I thought it was the truth: that the fire I could create was a blessed gift, something I could use to help my small, close-knit community._

_And then, the government men showed up._

_My people, even with my fire and all their wolfish forms, were no match for the armored men with their years of training and their guns. In the end, I was forced to change back and shout for my people to stop; I told my people to let the government men take me when I was barely thirteen years old. They resisted--of course they did, for what kind of a pack would they be if they were to let their blessed child be ripped from their hands--but when they saw my hair, they backed down._

_The government men may not have known what it meant that my russet hair had turned black. I'd hardly felt the change, but my people knew that it meant something major had changed in me. Without really knowing what it meant, I'd given up my hope for my people. No longer would I be the reddish-brown my mother said was beautiful and that I'd come to love so much; no, instead, my wolf would be a pitch black that almost seemed to be purple in the light. I knew this only because my hair was too long and needed a cut, and I could see the color shift as I was forced into a cramped dog cage._

_Even still, my hair is black. It hangs in my eyes, far overdue for a cut. I'd known these cages almost longer than I'd known life with my pack. They were a terrible but familiar home, though the scents changed more often than I'd like. A change most often meant that someone new had been caught and forced into a cage somewhere else in the building. It meant someone new had been forced into the hell I wish I didn't know._

_Of course, sometimes the change in scents is another crowd of humans coming through, wanting to gaze upon the caged wolves like they're at a pet store. Like they have the right to see us. Like they're inherently better than us because they only have one body, because they can't use magic,_ because they were born human.

 _I wake up to the scent of a new werewolf. When I open my eyes, I see him. He's not in cuffs. He doesn't have a wolfsbane collar on. He's hidden amongst the crowd of humans, staring in barely disguised horror at the rest of us in our cramped cages. He's staring at_ me.

* * *

  
It's almost painfully easy to get a pass for one of the tours that the government gives. All they ask for is your name, and then they charge you fifteen dollars. The tour pass weighs like a stone about my neck, and I find myself glad that I left Chanhee at the pack gathering to play with the other pups. I can already smell the terror in the air, the mixed scents of hundreds of wolves. Along with the wolves are the muted scents of hundreds of different things: the crispness of lightning, the roiling anger of a storm, the drifting amber of wind, the tumbling mist of a waterfall. Strongest to me is that recurring smell of embers, the sweetness of burning sap, the featherlight brush of ash--the wolf who smells like fire must be someone unique and powerful.

The tour begins, and I follow with a start. I put my hands behind my back and try to look interested as the government employee tells us about the history of facilities like this one. I hide myself amongst the crowd of oblivious humans. Not so long ago, my nose was as dull and useless as those of the people here. It's funny to me now how ignorant they are of the things they can't learn just by seeing. The tour guide stops in front of an iron door and looks back us, a stupid grin on his ugly face.

"It's time for the main event of the tour, folks. Are you ready to face the wolves?" The rest of the crowd nods eagerly, chatting amongst themselves. I'm almost too hot in my heavy coat and scarf. The door creaks as he opens it slowly, like he's trying to tease the crowd. The scents of the wolves grow even stronger and I have a headache almost instantly because, along with the myriad of scents, I can smell sickness and wolfsbane as well. We spill into the new room, and I'm pulled along by the shuffling of the crowd. I feel sick and dazed in the face of all the scents. I try my best to veil my horror as I stare at the caged wolves. Only, they aren't wolves right now. They're just people. They're people shoved into tiny cages, too tight and cramped for them to stand up or lay down comfortably. There's not even any padding. They sit on the bare bars, which dig into their thin bodies in a way that must be painful. A glance at the crowd shows that no one else feels the same revulsion I do. They're all _pleased_ by this.

"Look at that one," someone says. The guide looks as well, towards the wolf with the too-long black hair. The color doesn't suit him at all.

"Ah, yes. This one has been here almost as long as this facility has been running. He was one of our first captures," the man says proudly. The way he says it makes it seem as if he were there that day. The wolf sits up and I continue to stare. "At the time he was just a little fella, but even still, he wiped out half our squad all on his own!" Someone in the crowd asks, "How?" and the tour guide goes to answer the baited question easily. I interrupt with a raised hand and the most innocent, curious voice I can.

"These... things. They're all shifters, aren't they? I've read about them. Why have you got them here?" The ugly man grins and rubs his hands together.

"That's an easy one," he says, glancing around to build up a sense of mischief. "Every single one of these mutts can use magic. That one there," he says, pointing back at the noiret, "uses"--and I can tell what he's going to say before he says it because he smells like--"fire." After a few moments, the guide straightens up and clears his throat. "Well, that's the end of the tour. Feel free to wander around and poke a bit of fun at these guys if you want. They can't use their magic because of the wolfsbane collars they got on." I wander over to the noiret, and he continues to stare. The closer I get, the sharper his gaze becomes. A low rumble starts in his throat. When I finally stand no farther than three inches from his cage, I crouch down and catch his gaze. My headache gets worse all of a sudden, and my stomach rolls. I feel sick, too weak to stop myself from falling down in front of him. He reaches out, winds his fingers through the wire of his cage. There's something urgent in his eyes.

I reach out to touch him, and everything goes black.

* * *

  
"Bubba?" The voice that says it is thin and strained. Chanhee sounds scared, whispering right in my ear. "Bubba, there's a stranger in--" My eyes fly open and I pull Chanhee into my lap, grabbing the nearest thing I can and pointing it in front of me. The house is blurry for a few moments, and when my weary eyes clear, I see a black-haired man on the floor in front of us. He's still asleep, his breathing harsh and his figure painfully thin. I recognize him as the werewolf from the weird building I'd found in the woods. _How'd he get here?_

"It's okay, Chanhee. I think I brought him here. It'll be okay." I set the lamp back on the side table and let Chanhee out of my arms. He leans forward, sniffing carefully.

"Bubba, he smells like a wolfie," Chanhee exclaims. He sounds excited for a moment, and then the fear kicks in. "Is he... a bad wolfie?" I shake my head and crawl over to him, carefully lifting his head and putting it in my lap. The wolfsbane burns as I undo the collar, and tears well up in my eyes as the tips of my fingers go numb. I hiss in pain and drop it to the ground. Chanhee goes to investigate the new thing, but I hurriedly push it farther away.

"Chani, don't touch that. It's a very bad thing for us to touch. It'll burn you!" Chanhee backs away obediently, giving it a wide berth as he crawls over.

"Why'd he hab it, then?"

"He didn't wanna wear it, Chani. He didn't have a choice," I tell the pup. After a moment, I answer the question I know Chanhee is bound to ask. "A group of very bad people had him. They used it to suppress the magic he's got." Chanhee carefully traces his fingers over the bright red burn that wraps around his neck. It'll scar soon enough. The wolf hisses and opens his eyes. He stares up at me, shocked to see me again. His gaze flickers over to my little brother, and confusion fills his face.

"You--" he coughs, his voice hoarse. He squeezes his eyes shut for a moment before opening them again to stare at me. "How'd you get them to-- to let you walk out with me?" A brief memory flashes through my mind, of the way I charmed the guards to let us go after the human crowd had disappeared. Confusion and gratitude crawl up the thread between us.

"I'm unregistered, and human noses are too dull to spot me. Sneaking into that tour was easy. And I don't-- I dunno know how I got you out. I was never able to do something like that before." He looks away, a thoughtful look calming his face.

"Your eyes were glowing. And we..."

"Yeah," I murmur, a little smile on my face. "Have you told me your name?" He shakes his head and his eyes slide over to Chanhee. "Well, I'm Lee Juyeon, and this is my little brother, Lee Chanhee."

"I'm... Sunwoo. I don't remember my-- my last name. My family name." His gaze flickers between us, finally resting on the little scar across Chanhee's cheek. Scars from being turned never fade all the way, but Chanhee's will seem to get smaller as he grows. The angry lines on my back, however... those'll never go away. "You two weren't... born, were you?"

"No," I whisper. "We were turned." Chanhee whimpers slightly, huddles closer to my side. I bury my fingers in his hair.

"I didn't think so," Sunwoo says. "What now?" I shrug, because I really have no clue what to do now that I've stolen Sunwoo from the government. Chanhee stands up suddenly.

"F'ozen!" Sunwoo scrunches up his eyebrows, and I realize he must've still been in the government building when _Frozen_ came out. He was probably in there before Chanhee was even born. I carefully help Sunwoo sit up as Chanhee runs around, giggling as he sets up the TV to watch Frozen. He'll likely make it a marathon of both movies, and maybe after that he'll put in _Pirates_. Sunwoo limps over to the couch with my help, and his stomach rumbles. I glance at him, at the burns on his neck and the much lighter ones on my fingers.

"Hey, I'm gonna... I'll go get food. And I'll see if someone knows what to do about... these," I tell Sunwoo, motioning to our burns. He looks scared. "Don't worry. My pack isn't going to turn you in. If anything, they'll insist on letting you join and pampering you." I exchange my heavy coat and scarf for a hoodie at the door. "Don't open the door for anyone, Chani. I've got a key if I need to get back in, okay? You know where to go if you feel scared, right?" Chanhee nods dutifully, staring seriously at me until the opening credits of Frozen start playing. Sunwoo watches me go, and the thread between us stretches.

* * *

  
No one ever comes after us. Scars heal over and Jacob tells me that by saving Sunwoo, our wolves had recognized each other as mates. My face burns scarlet when he tells me. Sunwoo joins the pack without a hitch, and he never leaves our little cabin. By the time Chanhee is ten, none of us have nightmares. Chanhee doesn't remember our parents, and one knows how we were turned through stories the pack and I tell him. Instead, Chanhee has Sunwoo and I, his "old married couple" which he considers to be his closest family.

I never again use the blessing that came when the bond between Sunwoo and I came about. Sunwoo only uses his magic to light the fires in our wood stove.

Eric complains about the unfairness of Sunwoo joining and my getting a boyfriend before him when the spring rains cease and he ushers in the warmth of summer.

Sunwoo settles into the pack like he was always meant to be there. He settles into Chanhee and I like he was always there.

* * *

EXTRA!!

* * *

The eclipse is something all of us despise, because the pull of the moon forces a turn during the daytime. Those who were born werewolves can't stop the transformation no matter how hard they try. Chanhee and I go around and help everyone into their chains as some of the only turned members of the pack. When he was younger, Chanhee used to hate this, could never understand why we had to chain everyone. Now though, at fifteen, he's old enough to know that everyone prefers being chained over the savage attitude that an eclipse turn always brings.

We return to the cabin and help Sunwoo onto his feet. He's shaking already, his eyes red-rimmed and his nose running as the eclipse grows closer and closer. He nearly falls down the stairs as we lead him under the floor of my bedroom, down in the cellar where he already has a nest built. He collapses into it as we chain up his arms and legs. Quiet growls tumble from his throat at the touch of the iron. We sit against the wall after I go up and close the trapdoor, and we wait as his eyes glow ever-brighter. He yips and whines as he's suddenly forced to transform, and we follow his lead. Turning with Sunwoo is the only way to help keep him calm. He told us the first time that as humans, our scent is too diluted to do anything but aggravate him. Chanhee tentatively goes over before I do, cuddling up against Sunwoo. Sunwoo weakly falls back into the nest, and I join the two in the cuddle pile. We fall asleep in the midst of the eclipse and are only woken long after, when Sangyeon pulls up the trapdoor and wanders down to find us in a pile of black fur so dense that he can scarcely tell who's who.


End file.
